Due to low sales, wholesalers go on the hunt for consumers

After the frenzy of the Hot Sale, during which companies managed to sell more than last year with a greater number of units sold, it's now the wholesalers ' turn, seeking to stimulate purchases in a joint effort. From Monday, May 19th to Sunday, May 25th, they will hold the " Black Wholesaler " event, where they will seek to revive their flagging sales. The event is organized by the Argentine Chamber of Distributors and Wholesale Self-Service Stores (CADAM) and, according to their announcement, is inspired by the concept of the popular "Black Sale" program, which aims to turn accounts in the red into black on balance sheets.

This sector's proposal promises a week of special promotions and discounts of up to 40% at all participating stores. Approximately 190 brands, both physical and online, will join this initiative as "part of a joint effort by manufacturers, distributors, and wholesalers to generate volume, visibility, and competitiveness in the sector." The initiative is based on the decline in consumption during the first four months of the year, despite people's need for access to these types of products.

It's no small feat that the Food and Beverage category was among the categories with the most units sold during the recently concluded Hot Sale . Economist José Vargas of the consulting firm Evaluecon emphasized that these types of promotions with limited-time discounts are very beneficial for both consumers and businesses. "Interesting alliances are often formed between wholesalers , suppliers, and banks to offer great benefits to customers," Vargas noted.

Thus, while consumers find tempting prices that even allow some to buy early, businesses increase their sales volume. "People and retailers tend to be aware of prices, but it's always important to be sure whether it's a discount or not," Vargas warned. "Through this promotional week, we hope to generate a multiplier effect that benefits the entire chain: from the manufacturer to the end consumer," CADAM emphasized.

Rubén David, manager of the wholesaler Oscar David , emphasized that Black Mayorista 's focus is on recovering some of the consumption volume lost in the first four months of the year. " Sales have been declining, and although they have improved slightly since they have stopped declining, there has not yet been a recovery impact," David explained. Along similar lines, Eugenia Abraham, commercial manager of the wholesaler Blow Max, agreed that sales have been very stagnant and that these types of actions seek to boost them.

Mendoza Supermarket

The Andes

Especially because, although product prices haven't increased significantly, other economic prices, such as tariffs, have, which also impacts businesses. Both business leaders emphasized that an improvement in consumption levels is expected for the second half of the year to balance out the year, so in the meantime, promotions are ways to boost sales . In this context, they also emphasized that this is a joint effort with suppliers and companies to offer real discounts.

"We're going to extend the Black Wholesale program until May 31st because we're not open on Saturday afternoons or Sundays," commented Rubén David. Furthermore, closer to the collection date, they also hope to offer an opportunity for their customers, both merchants and end users. "We're going to offer rotating products that are part of the consumer basket, not those you want to get rid of because no one buys them," the businessman emphasized. He added that the opportunities for customers will be more than interesting.

Although Blow Max isn't associated with CADAM, it has also joined the movement with its "Blow Week" and discounts of the same percentage during this week. "We've achieved this with the collaboration of suppliers so that people can access them, since the decline is perceived," Abraham explained. The entrepreneur commented that April and May are typically low sales months and that these initiatives are useful because consumers have learned to take advantage of good opportunities to stock up.

The experience of previous years with "Black or Hot Weeks" has been positive, according to the merchants surveyed, who emphasized that the drop in shelf prices is real. Furthermore, they also accompany the promotions with credit cards, installments, and everything possible to leverage sales until the second half of the year begins to provide the expected respite. "Mendoza residents know how to look for price and variety, so we offer a variety of brands and the option of wholesale pricing with the purchase of three," Abraham noted. This is because merchants also find it difficult, for example, to buy a whole box and also need to be stocked.